Time To Face Reality Part II: The Katlan Demon
by Gala000085
Summary: SPNAngel Xover Sequel to Time to Face Reality. Dean is seriously attacked by an unknown demon species and the closest source of help Sam can get is in Los Angeles, where trouble is also stirring with the Angel Investigations team. Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I'm so sorry about the time it took me to get the first chapter out on this sequel. If you have not read the prequel to this story _Time to Face Reality_, you may be a little lost at times. So, I hope that I have not lost all of my faithful reviewers from the first story and they are ready to go along on the ride for this one. So fasten you seatbelt, here goes...

...after the disclaimer: I do not own any of the shows or their characters.

* * *

"Sam, where the hell are we?"

Sam had to admit that his brother's question was understandable. They had now been walking in what seemed to be no-man's-land for about half an hour and had seen no sign of the demon they were hunting. Sam could feel his brother starting to get anxious, though Dean would never admit it. Sam stopped for a moment and sighed, pondering on Dean's question. He had a vague idea of which direction they had come from, but the thought that worried him the most was the sense of being watched.

"I think it's watching us, Dean." Sam whispered to his brother.

"Come out! We know you're here!" Dean bellowed.

"Dean, shut up!" Sam hissed, but it was too late. Out from the long grass jumped the demon they had been searching for. It jumped straight at Dean, though he was prepared and kicked it hard in its lower abdomen.

The demon was a strange looking thing and one Sam had never seen before. The hunt had not been planned but the demon had come out of nowhere through the window and into their motel room, where both brothers were sitting peacefully. It had not taken them long to fight it off though it had disappeared through the window before either of them had had the chance to finish it off. Sam had not been able to get a good look at it, but after the few glimpses he had seen he would have described it has more reptilian than human as it skin seemed to be covered in scales.

The demon charged at Dean again with an ear-piercing cry, though Dean was prepared for it and swung at it again. Sam quickly joined it, but no sooner had he joined in than he noticed Dean started swaying on his feet. He shouted his brother's name but kept fighting the demon which seemed to be enjoying the fight rather than finding it fearful. Suddenly Sam felt his head start to feel dizzy, but he quickly grabbed hold of his knife and swung at the demon, which hissed at him loudly exposing fangs, not unlike those of a snake. Sam stared at the demon perplexed for a moment as it hissed, though he was well prepared when it charged at him. He swung at it again and this time caught it on one of its scaly arms. The creature stopped and turned it dark eyes on, looking straight at him as though thinking of how best to tackle him. Sam glanced at Dean and saw that his brother had caught his balance and had drawn his gun.

"Sam get down!" Dean yelled at him and Sam ducked just as the demon jumped at him.

Then Sam heard the most awful sound he had ever heard in his life: his brother was screaming. Dean never showed his pain or at least tried to hide it the best he could. Sam drew his gun at pointed it at the demon that was pinning Dean to the ground with the use of its three-fingered clawed hands, and fired. The creature cried out loudly as the bullet entered its side and it reluctantly thrust itself off Dean who lay motionless on the ground. Sam flung himself towards Dean, but when he looked for the demon it had disappeared.

"Dean?" Sam said hoping to get some response from the still form of his brother. Dean did not respond and Sam immediately felt for the pulse. At first he feared the worst until he felt a faint pumping against his fingers. It was hard to see by the dull light of the moon the extent of damage Dean had suffered, but Sam knew that he had to get Dean help and it had to be fast.

Sam tried to lift his brother off the ground and, breathing heavily, he managed to haul Dean with back towards the motel. With every step he took Sam grew more fearful as Dean still showed no sign of waking up. What had that thing done to him? From what Sam had seen it did not look as if the damage done to his brother had been that great, though he could not drown out his brother's screams.

By the time Sam reached the Impala he was positively scared beyond relief. He told himself that Dean would be fine; hell his brother had almost died twice but had pulled through in the end. _And he's not dying, he's just unconscious_, Sam reassured himself as he placed Dean in the back seat. That was when he noticed something strange about the three puncture wounds that Dean had received on either side of his shoulders. The blood that was soaking through Dean's shirt had a tint of a different colour in it. He leaned slightly closer and saw shades of a bright yellow, almost clear, mixing with Dean's blood. Sam quickly pulled away Dean's shirt to look at the wounds.

He gasped as he took in the damage. From each small puncture wound, all six of them, thick and thin lines of black were drawing out.

"No, no, no." Sam breathed desperately as he looked at the poison spreading in Dean's body. He had to get help to his brother and it had to be fast, he knew that much, but where? A hospital would ask too many questions as the poison Dean had received from the demon was most likely something humans did not come by every day. Sam whispered something to Dean that probably did not make a lot of sense as he fished out the map they had near the front seats. He folded it out and looked at it. They were close to Los Angeles, very close. Sam looked from the map to Dean and made up his mind.

* * *

Doyle looked at the vampire in front of him who wore a mask of great displeasure.

"Look, Angel, man," Doyle said in his wonderful Irish accent, "you have to lighten up. This look is great for you."

Angel looked down at himself taking in everything from the brightly coloured shirt to the white shoes that Doyle had insisted on him trying. He had to strongly disagree with Doyle. No way did this look beat his black.

"Doyle, I really don't think –" Angel began in a rather hopeless tone, though he was interrupted by Cordelia entering the room who quickly took in Angel's appearance.

"Oh my God." Cordelia said looking rather shocked.

"It was Doyle's idea." Angel said, though his voice tailed off towards the end.

"He actually wore it." Cordelia said as she turned to Doyle, her face breaking into a grand smile. "I can't believe you actually got him to wear that!"

By the end of it Angel was the only one who did not have a smile plastered on his face, but he was glad to say that he was probably the only one who looked positively murderous.

"Look, it's getting dark so I have to go." Angel said after he had changing into his preference clothing and made his way past Cordelia and Doyle towards the door leading outside.

"Hey, Angel!" Doyle called after him before he walked out. "Come here for a second."

"If this is another one of your splendid jokes Doyle I swear I'm going to kill you." Angel growled as he made his way over to the desk where Doyle was sitting and Cordelia was leaning over his shoulder.

"Wouldn't dream of it, man." Doyle reassured him with a quick smile.

"What is it?" Angel asked as he too came round to stand behind Doyle.

"It's just weird." Doyle said moving his hand senseless across the screen.

"What's weird?" Angel pressed on as he looked at the various colours on the computer screen that he had no idea what represented.

"You see all of this?" Doyle asked, pointing to a certain large area of colour clustered together. Angel nodded. "I made this thing to show where most attacks are and it's weird, man. Like, seriously full on freak-out-now, kind of weird."

"Doyle." Angel prompted.

"Right." Doyle breathed. "The average numbers of attacks are moving eastwards."

"Why is that so strange?" Angel asked, trying to make head or tail out of what he was seeing.

"Because it happened almost at once. It's as though something has scared all of the evil in L.A. away from a certain part of the city; the westward side." Doyle explained, and Angel noticed beads of sweat appearing on the man's forehead as he spoke. Angel understood his worry. They had dealt with many things while being in L.A. but it was never a good sign when all evil fled.

"Do you know when they all started fleeing?" Angel asked, looking directly at Doyle.

"It was around two days ago. I didn't say anything at first because I didn't know if it meant anything, but this…this is rapid. They are not wasting their time." Doyle explained, looking rather nervous. Angel knew that Doyle was tough enough when he wanted to be, though he knew the Irish half-demon would rather have peace and quiet than battle upon battle.

"What do you think, Angel?" Cordelia asked as she sat on the desk next to the computer. "Another apocalypse because I really don't like those."

"Let's just stay calm, okay?" Angel said as he straightened up. Doyle's information had worried him but there was no need to install more fear in his team than necessary. "Good work, Doyle, just continue to monitor that. I'll go out and see if I can find out about anything."

Doyle looked rather pleased with himself as Angel turned away from the desk.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Cordelia asked before Angel had taken two steps away from the desk.

"Help Doyle?" Angel suggested.

"Have you really not got anything more worthy of my talents?" Cordelia said as she threw her hair back.

Angel looked at her with uncertainty. He was never quite sure what to expect from Cordelia and what to say to her. At the moment he had no idea what it was that she really wanted him to say.

"You just do what you do best." Angel said, with the most encouraging tone he could muster.

"What's that then?" Cordelia asked, a big smile on her face.

However, before Angel had the chance to think of an answer the door opened and a young man the Angel Investigations team had not seen for a couple of months, stormed in, a limp form in his arms.

* * *

So there goes the first chapter. I know it's a bit short and I'll try to make the next chapters a bit longer.

Please review! I'll send lovely virtual cookies to anyone who drops in a review!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks so much to all who reviewed on the first chapter! Boxes of virtual cookies have been sent to you all!

Disclaimer: I don't own either of the shows or their characters - again.

* * *

Angel took in anything of the man standing in front of him. It had been a couple of months since he had last seen the Winchester brothers. It was actually after the big showdown with the vampire cult. Sam looked positively haggard, but Angel did not miss the stale smell of blood that made him have to quickly shake his head to keep the demon at bay. He looked at the limp form in Sam's arms and noticed that it was Sam's brother, Dean; though the last time Angel had seen him he had looked a lot more alive.

"Angel…" Sam breathed, a pleading tone to his voice.

Angel roused himself out of his stupor and raced forwards to help guide Sam towards the couch where they gently laid Dean down.

"Sam." Angel acknowledged with a quick nod of the head in Sam direction.

"Man, what the hell happened?" Doyle asked as he rushed forwards.

"We were hunting this demon a couple of miles from here when it got hold of Dean." Sam replied in a rush. Angel noted that he too looked about to fall down and quickly guided the youngest brother to a chair, which he quickly jumped out off again. "I need your help. I couldn't take him to a hospital, but I think…I think he's dying."

Sam had barely looked at any of them, but Angel noted the frantic tone in the young man's voice and the tears glistening in his eyes.

"Angel!" Cordelia cried at him, clearly desperate to get him to do something.

Angel walked forwards towards the couch and pulled down Dean's shirt slightly at the part where he could see the blood soaking through it. He could feel panic starting to rise slightly inside of him when he saw the three puncture wounds with the black veins crawling away from them.

"He needs help. Now!" Angel yelled at Doyle who seemed to have gone into a state of shock.

"That's bad, man, that's really bad." Doyle muttered, his voice shaking slightly as he hurried out of the room.

"What kind of demon was it?" Angel questioned, casting a glance at Sam.

"I have no idea." Sam said, running a hand through his hair in clear frustration. "We were sitting in our motel room when this demon jumped in through the window. After a few hits it jumped out again but we took after it. It pinned Dean to the ground with its front claws." Sam looked down at his brother and back at Angel. "I think there was poison in its claws, that's why I didn't dare take him to the hospital. You were the closest I could think of."

Angel nodded to show that he understood. He never had been much for the talking but what he had just been told changed a lot. He had no idea what to do.

"I need to make a phone call." He said and walked towards the desk where he quickly dialled the number he needed.

"Angel I –" Doyle began when he entered the room again, though Cordelia shushed him and pointed at Angel.

Angel kept his eyes on the two Winchesters as he listened to the beeping sounds coming from the phone. What had happened to them since the last time he had seen them? Sam looked as though the whole world had just landed on his shoulders – like how Angel generally felt every day – and Dean looked more dead than alive.

"_Hello_?" Rupert Giles' British accent rang through the line.

"Giles!" Angel said desperately as he noticed that the black veins on Dean's shoulders were starting to spread out before his eyes.

"_Angel_." Giles said more as a statement than a question, his displeasure evident in his voice. "_What can I do for you_?"

"I need your help." Angel answered through gritted teeth.

"_If this has anything to do with Buffy –_" Giles began, though Angel quickly cut him off.

"This has nothing to do with Buffy." Angel noticed that both Cordelia and Doyle looked at him momentarily. "A friend of mine has been attacked by a demon."

"_What kind of demon_?" Giles asked quickly, clearly more interested now that he knew that Angel's call was not about Buffy.

"That's the problem, we don't know." Angel answered, sharing eye contact with Sam for a moment. "It apparently had three clawed fingers on each hand. It got him on both sides of the shoulders and it doesn't look good."

"_Describe it to me_." Giles prompted.

"From each wounds it's as though black threads are forming. Looks a lot like blood poisoning. We think there was poison in the demon's claws." Angel tried to remember everything that Sam had told him in the hope that Giles would be of some help.

The old Watcher was quiet for a while before he sighed, "_I'll be there in the morning_," and ended the call.

"He's coming." Angel said as he too put down the phone.

* * *

Sam looked at Angel wondering just who it was that was coming, but at the time he did not really care much as long as he could bring some help to Dean. Sam sat down opposite his brother on one of the chairs and looked at Dean's pale face.

"I've seen people with worse and they've all pulled through." Doyle said from behind him. Sam turned his head and looked at the Irishman, waiting for him to continue, though he merely squirmed a bit.

"Do you want anything, Sam?" Cordelia asked, sitting down in the chair next to his. "You don't really look too good."

"I'm fine; really." Sam assured her with a quick smile before returning his eyes to Dean. "Did you guys just see that?"

"See what?" Cordelia and Doyle asked in unison as Angel came up behind them.

Sam told himself that he was being stupid, simply hallucinating, but he was quite certain that he had just seen Dean's hand move. He hurried towards his brother and held his hand tightly, whispering his name.

"Sammy?" Dean said so quietly that Sam could barely hear him.

"Dean?" Sam replied immediately. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Dean muttered as he tried to push himself up from the couch.

"No, no. Dean, don't move." Sam said as he desperately but gently pushed Dean back down on the couch.

"Hey, it's…it's the dead guy." Dean chuckled when Angel came into his line of vision.

Angel did not answer but merely raised his eyebrows. Doyle came up next to Sam and crouched down beside him. Sam noted that he looked extremely worried and Sam had a feeling he knew why.

"Dean, does it hurt? Anywhere?" Sam added when Dean looked completely confused.

"Dude, do you think I'm drunk or something?" Dean hissed. "Of course it hurts. Some demon bitch just clawed me."

"Oh…I…er…" Sam began but instead brought a hand up to ruffle his hair.

"What about you?" Dean asked with a sideward glance at Angel.

"I'm fine." Sam lied. He did not find it necessary to tell Dean at the moment that he felt the effects of finding the demon, carrying Dean to the Impala and driving like the devil was on his tail to Angel's place. "Dean, Angel called after some help, so –"

"Why can't you just pull this thing out of me?" Dean asked, his voice now sounding close to normal.

"Pull what out of you?" Sam said, starting to become gradually more worried about his brother.

"Dude, do I have to spell everything out for you?" Dean said though he grimaced slightly when he tried to move again.

"Move over." Angel's voice sounded suddenly from behind Sam, but before he had time to react, Angel had grabbed hold of his shoulders and pulled him out of the way. Doyle jumped up with a yelp as Cordelia lingered by the desk.

Sam began to feel anger rise inside of him that he was unsure he could control. No one should remove him from his brother. Dean too seemed stressed by the situation as he had taken to swearing continuously and again tried to move, this time succeeding in sitting up.

"Stay." Angel ordered, holding a hand up towards Sam as though he was a dog.

"You hurt him again; I swear I will kill you this time." Dean growled from his seat on the couch.

Angel ignored his comment and Sam noticed that he instead eyed the blotch of blood on Dean's chest, showing through the shirt.

"What is it?" Sam asked, as Angel's face creased into lines of worry.

"I think you were right." Angel said calmly with a look at Sam. "Looks like there was poison in those claws."

"Why do I get the feeling I'm being left out here?" Dean asked, though it troubled Sam that his brother was now looking paler than before with dark circles appearing under his eyes.

"Dean, man, that demon that attacked you?" Doyle said and continued when Dean nodded. "Your brother thinks there was poison in its claws. It looks like he was right."

"So I haven't got knives poking out of me that you can just remove?" Dean questioned, looking up at Sam.

Sam looked away from his brother's face, for a moment unable to hold the eye contact. He vaguely heard Doyle answer him, but his brain was starting to feel as it did whenever a vision had just passed.

"Sammy?"

Dean's weak voice brought Sam back to his senses where he noticed that Dean looked even paler than before as he leant back against the couch, his eyes closed.

"Dean?" Sam rushed towards his brother again who had once again passed out. "What the hell happened?" Sam shouted as he looked at Angel who looked just as confused as Angel did.

"Can I say something?" Cordelia suddenly spoke from behind them. The man, the half-demon and the vampire all turned to look at her. "Usually when someone's poisoned you try to remove it. Don't you think that would be a starting point?"

Doyle cleared his throat lightly and looked at Angel and Sam. Sam cursed himself for his own stupidity and looked at Angel who was blinking continuously and shifting his gaze between Sam and Dean.

"I…er…how?" Sam said meaninglessly, glancing at Dean again who looked more like a corpse than before.

"I need to go." Angel said suddenly as he started towards the door.

"What?" Sam exclaimed in disbelief. "You're just going to go?"

"What do you want me to do?" Angel growled at him. "You brought the trouble here, so don't you dare drop it in my shoulders."

"Angel!" Doyle called after him as Angel walked out of the door into the night, his cloak flowing behind him.

Sam gritted his teeth and took a deep breath to try and get his temper under control. He looked round at the two others who looked just as confused at Angel's behaviour as he did. True the last time they had been here Sam had not spend that much time around Angel. It had been Dean who got to know the vampire best out of the two brothers, but Dean's look at Angel told Sam that after the months apart, Dean had grown worried about the vampire again.

"What if we just wait until Giles comes." Cordelia suggested. "He'll be here in morning and he'll know what to do."

Her tone made Sam wonder who she was trying to convince the most: Sam or herself.

"Anyhow, I think we should get him downstairs." Doyle suggested. "I mean it'll probably be better if –"

Sam looked at Doyle when he suddenly stopped speaking and instead doubled over, landing on all fours on the floor.

"Doyle!" Cordelia called as she quickly sat by Doyle's side.

Sam looked from Dean to Doyle. His brother was still unconscious and it killed Sam inside to see the vulnerability in his brother. Dean had always been the one to hold things together. Doyle swore loudly and Sam looked back to him and rushed forwards, crouching down on the floor in front of him.

"I think," Doyle panted as he finally looked up at Sam, "that Angel could use some help."

* * *

Well that was it; the worst chapter ever to be posted on fanfiction. I appologise to all who actually read this through; are you all still alive? 


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I am so SORRY about the incredibly long gap between the updates. Real life has been quite a challenge lately with my pony becoming ill through January and having to be put down at the beginning of February along with increased amount of college work. I promise, though that the next chapter will be out quicker!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the shows or their characters.

* * *

Angel walked slowly down a narrow alleyway, listening to the rhythmic thumping of his hoes against the wet tarmac, which was occasionally interrupted by a splash through a puddle. The scowl on his face would have sent anyone, human or demon, scurrying off in the opposite direction, had there been any in sight. He stopped for a moment and looked up towards the dark sky. It was a cloudy night, obscuring the stars from his view. It was strange; it had not been long since Buffy had been and he had seen the sun, felt his heart pound in his chest, but it felt like it was an eternity ago. 

The vampire sighed and walked on, unconsciously fiddling with the stake in his jacket pocket. He was angry with himself. Incredible angry with himself for how he had snapped at Sam. He guessed that he had let some of his inner aggression and despair out on the young man. The thing was, Angel was scared, and he hated being scared. The condition Dean had been in and his sudden changes from unconsciousness to consciousness back to unconsciousness worried him. He did not know what kind of demon he was dealing with and last time that had happened, his humanity had been returned.

In truth, he was dreading Giles' arrival. Of course the old Watcher would have no idea of how things had been in reality with Buffy as not even Buffy herself had a clue. He ran a hand through his hair and growled slightly. He had to pull himself together and give his aid where he could. After all, was that not the reason he was here? He slammed his hand hard into the wall on his left, leaving a crack in the bricks. He stopped for a moment again and looked down at his hand which bore a few cuts here and there from the harsh treatment. He closed his eyes for a little hoping the familiar darkness would allow him to gather his thoughts.

The sound of trodden on broken glass snapped his eyes open. The sound had come from somewhere further down the darkness of the alleyway. Angel's hand closed around the stake and quietly and carefully walked forward. He pushed al thoughts away that would distract him and instantly put his vampire hearing and sight to good use. He could see nothing moving in the darkness. Likewise, there was nothing but the distant sound of cars that reached his ear. But the smell. There was that lingering smell of death in the air that caused the hairs at the back of his neck to stand on end.

He carried on walking, slowly and carefully down the alleyway; the smell getting stronger with every step he took. He stopped beside a big, black bin large enough to house a couple of corpses. Angel wondered if this was its purpose as the smell here was the strongest it had been, making his vampire senses tingle. A loud thump on the lid of the bin made him turn his head.

A scaly leg, supported by a three-fingered clawed hand, where the two longest fingers were folded back and the shortest taking the weight at the back, was resting on top of the bin. As Angel watched another hand was brought down with a hard thump. Before he had time to react, the first hand was lifted and the claws ripped across his chest. He growled loudly, immediately slipping on his game face. The creature in front of him was poised on top of the bin, staring down hard on him, occasionally allowing him to see its two long fangs. Angel recognised it as the demon Sam had described and took in its appearance from the three-fingered hands to its dragon-like feet. The creature seemed more comfortable on all fours and Angel had to admit that it seemed rather menacing. It seemed by no means afraid of him as the look in its eye reminded Angel more of a wolf about to jump on its prey.

He readied himself and when the creature jumped at him, he pulled the stake out of his jacket pocket and thrust it into the creature's neck. That had been his plan anyway. The creature had been ready for his attack and caught his wrist with its claw causing him to drop the stake. The creature eyed him, standing on all fours on the ground in front of him, swaying slight from hand to hand. Angel cursed himself for being careless enough not to bring more weapons than the stake, now lying some meters away from him, and the small knife which was tucked into his inner coat pocket.

As soon as he moved his hand the slightest the creature seemed about to jump at him. He felt ready though, so when it jumped at him again, he just had time to move quickly out of the way, allowing him enough time to pull out the knife. With a hysterical scream it jumped at him once more, its claws and fangs ready. Angel made a quick movement knowing the knife had caught it when the creature screamed again. He looked down at the knife and saw dark red, almost black blood drip from the blade.

He looked up at the creature again which had fallen eerily quiet. It was back on top of the bin looking calmly down at him, blood dripping rhythmically onto the lid from a gash in its left arm. Its posture and the look in its eye told Angel that it was clearly done playing games. With this creature Angel found it hard to tell whether or not he was ready for it. At first he had thought its ways of attack had been predictable, but the way it calmly stood on the bin now, made Angel unsure of what it was about to do.

He was not ready for it.

With speed incomparable to any Angel had ever witnessed, the creature had flung itself at him, burying its claws in his shoulders. Angel growled at it and hit it hard across the face. It seemed unfazed; merely angered. It bared its two fangs at Angel and for a brief moment Angel wondered if it was showing him how much bigger its fangs were compared to his. He raised a hand to hit it again when a loud gunshot rang through the air. The creature screamed loudly and withdrew its claws from Angel's shoulders. Before it disappeared into the night Angel just glimpsed a bullet hole in its side.

Angel pushed himself up from the ground and looked in the direction of the gunshot. Sam stood with his gun raised up in front of him. He was flanked by Doyle holding a crossbow, though it did not seem as if he had had time to fire it.

"What are you doing here?" Angel asked as he slowly walked towards them, limping slightly as he realised the toll the fight had taken on him. He rid his face of its vampire features as he reached the other two.

"A thank you might've been nice." Doyle mumbled but continued a bit louder. "Helping you."

"I was fine." Angel said, though he knew it was a lie. Whatever that demon had been about to do, it was nothing good.

"Yeah, we could see that." Sam answered, sarcasm seeping from his voice.

"Where's Cordelia?" Angel asked, though he knew full well. "Don't tell me you left her alone with Dean."

"Yeah we did." Sam said, clearly not seeing the problem.

"Let's go." Angel sighed. He knew he was being stupid, but after everything with Buffy he felt compelled to make sure that no one got hurt. The stalking after creatures in the night also meant that his mind was not allowed to wonder off into his memories.

"Angel, are you okay?" Doyle asked as Angel walked past him.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Angel said, though he had to admit that the areas where the creature's claws had entered were rather sore.

"You really don't look so good." Doyle pressed on but before Angel had time to retort his phone started ringing.

He really hated those things.

"Cordelia, what is it?" Angel asked worriedly as he answered the phone.

"_Angel! Oh my god, Angel!_" Cordelia screamed.

"Cordelia! Cordelia, calm down." Angel ordered, the other two looking at him with a worried expression. "What's wrong?"

"_It's Dean; Angel, please hurry_."

"We have to go." Angel said as he stuffed the phone back into his pocket and started racing back towards the apartment, the other two at his heels.

* * *

Dean fought hard against the pressure on his eyelids and forced them open again. It was very different from the last time. The room was spinning, making it hard for him to concentrate on specific objects. However, he was sure that he was still on the couch and that Sam was nowhere in sight. A blinding pain shot through him as he tried to move, but fought against it with gritted teeth. He sat up, panting hard, leaning his back against the support of the couch. A million curses ran through his mind that he would not mind using on the demon that did this to him. He hated feeling this vulnerable and he tried to just tell himself that he was being a wimp, that the pain was not as bad as he thought. 

He looked down at himself and lifting a hand, he slowly and carefully shifted his shirt so he could look at the wounds. Seeing them, he suddenly understood the pain he was feeling. True, he had not been subject to demon poison that much before, but he knew that his veins turning black were not a good sign. He raised his hand again and gently placed a finger on the wounds. Strangely they had stopped bleeding and a black crust had placed itself over each of them. He was unsure of how and why he woke up and fell back into unconsciousness. He never admitted his fears to Sam and rarely even to himself, but he felt the uncomfortable prickle of fear start to rise him.

He noticed that the black veins that threaded their way from the wounds had started to slowly crawl up his neck. His head felt heavier than before and he fought against the unconsciousness that threatened to overtake him again. His arms felt rather limp as they once again lay on either side of him as his head lolled back against the back support, before he jerked himself awake again. He felt rather sick and he began to find it harder to draw a breath. A heavy metallic taste entered his mouth and he tried to swallow, but his throat would not allow it. His body was thrown forward more according to instinct than will, as he spat out some blood and at the same time heaving for breath.

"Oh no!" He heard the voice of Cordelia Chase, but his body would not let him show any sign of recognition. He felt a hand on his back as more blood entered his mouth, and his breathing became more troubled.

He spat out the blood and continued to gasp for breath, but it felt as though an invisible hand was clawing his airways shut. His arms gave way he fell to the floor, with the taste of blood in his mouth once more. He vaguely heard Cordelia's frantic voice in the background, but he was using too much energy to try and breathe, to be able to make sense of her words.

"Dean, can you hear me?" Cordelia said loudly enough for the words to break through Dean's clouded mind.

He just about managed a nod of the head, finding speaking an impossible task.

* * *

Angel ran as fast as the demon inside of him would let him. He could hear the others behind him, but he did not stop to look. The areas where the creature's claws had infested had a dull ache to them that increased the longer he ran. 

"Angel!" Doyle called from somewhere behind him. Angel stopped abruptly and turned to see Sam holding the Impala's keys and he and Doyle standing next to the black car.

Angel growled something in agreement and it was not long before the three of them were seated in the car, Doyle in the back. Angel was expecting some sort of comment from the Irishman, but none came. Likewise, Sam remained silent and merely urged the Impala to go faster.

The car was still in motion when Angel jumped out upon arriving at the apartment. He raced inside, pushed the door open and stopped. Dean was laying on the floor, sharp, rapid, rasping sounds erupting from him. Cordelia was sitting next to him, looking as if she was trying to give some comfort.

"Angel!" She cried as she looked up at him.

Just as Angel noticed the splodges of blood around Dean, Sam and Doyle came barging through the door.

"Dean!" Sam shouted as he flung himself to the floor next to his brother. "What happened to him?"

"I don't know; I was just grabbing a file from downstairs and when I came up…hey presto!" Cordelia explained in a rush.

"He can't breathe." Sam said, as he turned Dean slightly.

"Sam?" An almost inaudible croaking escaped from Dean.

"It's okay, Dean…" Sam whispered to his brother.

"Angel?" Doyle prompted.

"Cordelia, get me a knife." Angel ordered, and Cordelia rushed out of the room to get the ordered item.

"Wait a minute; what are you going to do to him?" Sam asked, looking up from Dean; an anxious note lingering in his voice as Angel took off his leather jacket and threw it on the couch.

Cordelia came back into the room holding a relatively small knife.

"Perfect." Angel whispered as he accepted the knife, ignoring Sam's question.

Angel slipped off his shirt to expose the wounds the creature had given him.

"What are you doing?" Sam demanded, though Angel did not miss the worrying tone in the young man's voice.

"I need to check," Angel said, raising the knife to one of the black threads that was making its way gradually away from one of the puncture wounds, "whether I can get some of this poison out."

"Oh no, Angel; man, please don't…" Doyle whispered.

Angel closed his eyes for a moment before quickly and effectively cutting open his skin where the black threads were spreading. He gritted his teeth together to stifle the cry that was building in his throat.

"Oh that is disgusting." Doyle said looking rather sick.

Angel looked down at the area he had cut open and had to fully agree with Doyle. A thick, gel-like, black liquid was flowing slowly out of the wound. Angel tentatively put a hand to the substance. He had expected it to be warm but he was met with a cool feeling against his fingers. The black substance almost reminded him of hands as it clung to his fingers like glue.

"Doyle, or Cordelia would you get me a towel?" Angel asked, looking up from his shoulder.

Doyle jumped to the chance to leave the room for a moment, but it was not long before he returned and handed a towel to Angel.

"I have a feeling we need to get that stuff out of his neck." Angel said, crouching down next to Sam and Dean.

Sam nodded and stared at Angel with a fixed look as the vampire cleaned the knife. Sam looked down at Dean again, whose breathing had now worsened. His eyes were closed, his mouth hanging slightly open, though his chest barely moved as he tried to breathe.

"Do it." Sam said with a glance at Angel.

Angel saw the tears glistening in the young man's eyes and held his gaze for a moment before looking down at Dean. He could feel fear start to build inside of him. The black veins were so close to Dean's windpipe that Angel started to get cold feet, though he knew he had to do it. Another worry hit him hard. What if it would not work on Dean? Angel was a vampire who could not really die again, except for the obvious ways; but Dean was human. If he cut Dean's throat, the man was sure to die.

"Dammit." Angel growled, as he inched closer.

"Be careful." Sam pleaded quietly.

Angel did not dare make any promises so instead he set his mind to the task. Dean was barely moving and Angel only hoped that what he was about to do would save the man's life. Angel gulped in some air in the hope that it would steady him a bit, before lowering the knife towards the black vein that was working its way round Dean's throat.

As soon as the skin had been penetrated, the black substance sprouted out from the new wound. Dean jerked up and managed to finally get air to his lungs. What had worried Angel was also what to do about the blood that Dean was sure to lose, but first things first.

"It's working." Sam said, looking rather relieved.

"Man, that is nasty." Doyle mumbled as more of the black poison pumped out.

"What do you suppose you're going to do now, then?" Cordelia asked.

Angel looked at Sam expectantly, though found Sam sharing the same look and looking at him.

"I suppose, we should let more of that stuff out and then patch him up." Angel said, though he thought his words sounded rather lame to his own ears.

"Angel, you do realise that he could be loosing blood like this as well." Cordelia said, looking at Angel with raised eyebrows.

"When you guys are done arguing can I please get up from the floor." Dean's mumbled.

"Dean, are you okay?" Sam asked immediately.

"I'm fine, Sammy." Dean croaked, his eyes still closed. "Just…whatever you just did, don't do it again."

"I promise." Sam said. "I think we should just remove the goo that's there and make sure that he's okay."

"Dude, 'goo'?" Dean mumbled from the floor, a trace of a smile playing on his lips.

"Yeah, it just kind of reminds me of Venom from Spider-man." Sam said. Angel looked at him for a moment, finding Doyle and Cordelia doing the same, though the one to answer was Dean.

"You're such a dork."

* * *

Please feed the muse!!!

One more thing; would anyone like to see Spike make an appearance in this story as well? I promise Giles will be there in the next chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thanks to **cursedgirl** for the review on the last chapter! This chapter is actually the first that I am rather pleased about so please tell me if you agree.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the shows or the characters because if I did would I honestly be writing this disclaimer?

* * *

Dean felt like he had just been beaten to a bloody pulp, then driven over by a steam train, followed by being buried in a rock slide. In other words, he did not feel at all good. He supposed he had to be grateful he was even alive, but having some demon-poison cut out of your neck was not on his list of fun things to do. Even some hours later it still hurt badly even though he would never admit it – especially not in front of Angel. True, he had come to an understanding with the vampire and he trusted the demon to some extent, but Angel was still a vampire and that alone made Dean unable to, possible ever, trust him completely.

He had been able, with help from the others, to move downstairs as Cordelia has politely said that he would scare off any customers looking like that. He had simply refused to go into Angel's bedroom and had threatened the others that he was more than well enough to fight them if they tried to defy him. Instead he had been laid on the couch downstairs, much against Sam's wishes. Dean had seen his brother's horrified face and that was a total giveaway to how bad he really was. Though, with this injury he could easily tell for himself that it was bad.

His limbs ached as he tried to move, but he was grateful that he could at least feel his fingers though it did not seem as if his arms were too willing to co-operate. He sighed and opened his eyes and blinked slightly against the dull light in the room. He sighed heavily again, annoyed at the slight strain it took on his body. He turned his head slightly and almost jumped when he saw Sam sitting quietly on a chair next to the couch, staring at Dean.

"Geeze," Dean whispered, "are you planning on giving me a heart attack as well?"

"That's not funny, Dean." Sam said as he ground his teeth tightly.

"So, what's going on?" Dean asked, trying to be casual but knowing he failed miserably.

"You." Sam answered.

"Okay, geek brother, would you care to elaborate?" Dean said, hoping to bring some of his usual laissez-faire attitude back.

"Have you looked in the mirror lately?" Sam asked, a hint of a small smile actually playing on his lips.

"That good, huh?" Dean joked.

"Yeah, that good." Sam chuckled.

"Seriously, Sam, how bad?" Dean asked, unable to keep his mask in place any longer.

Sam sighed and shifted his gaze to the weapon cabinet in the corner of the room. He was quiet for a while seemingly trying to find the right words to say. Dean was about to tell him not to worry about it when his brother finally spoke.

"I spoke with the others about it, and we've given it some thought…"

"And?" Dean prompted, starting to worry slightly. His brother was never really lost for words.

"When that goo, or whatever it is, reached your neck, you almost couldn't breathe. It's starting to go closer to your heart, Dean, and I don't know what will happen then."

"Heart pumps the poison, or goo, around the body and I die." Dean said with a sigh, realising the major effect the demon-poison would have on his body once it reached his heart.

"I'm not going to let that happen." Sam said firmly, though Dean could see tears in his brother's eyes.

"Unless you want to cut my chest open, I don't really see we have much of a choice here." Dean reasoned. He tried to remain calm as that had always been his role in the Winchester family.

"Well, that friend of Angel's is coming soon; he'll be able to help." Sam said, sounding surer than he looked.

"Yeah, I'm sure he will." Dean said unenthusiastically.

"You could try to be a little more hopeful." Sam said irritably.

"Oh, I'm sorry, but you're not the one with demon goo inside of you." Dean snapped, hating himself for letting some of his fear out on Sam as his way of dealing with fear nearly always came out as anger.

"You're right, Dean, I'm not, but I am doing everything I can think of to save your life. You see this?" Sam gestured to a pile of books on the table next to him. "I have read every single one of these to try and find something that could help you in some way. And there is nothing. I'm scared, Dean – and I don't mean just for you but about everything to do with this demon. It attacked Angel last night, I shot it and it just walked off. I don't even know how to kill this thing."

Dean stared at his brother, completely at a loss for words. He knew that Sam was right: they knew nothing about this demon. However, Dean could not put all his faith and hope in a man he had never met and who he only knew as an acquaintance of a vampire. The thought did not make this man any more trustworthy in Dean's book, but he had the feeling that he could not just pretend that everything was going to be okay, when it so clearly was not.

"I'm sorry, Sammy." Dean said quietly, not sure what else to say to his brother.

Sam stood up and ran a hand through his hair as he started pacing the room.

"I don't really want your apologies," Sam said as he continued to pace the room, "I just want you to put some trust in others that we **are** actually trying to do something."

"Could you please stop pacing?" Dean requested when his head started spinning as he watched his brother's consistent pacing.

"Sorry." Sam mumbled as he sat down again. "It's just…what if we can't find anything? I mean –"

"Sam, please stop." Dean pleaded quietly. He was definitely not in the mood to hear all of Sam's worries because he was pretty sure that they could not compare to his own and he was not about to admit that.

"I'm sorry." Sam muttered.

"And would you please stop apologising?" Dean asked trying to slip a crooked smile onto his face but he was quite sure that it looked more like some strange grimace. "Let me put it to you this way: we have always found a way out of difficult times before, haven't we?"

"No."

"Okay, Mr Pessimist, maybe not always but most times we have pulled through, alright?" Dean persisted, trying to speak without letting his pain and fear show through. "So, why don't you stop worrying until you really have something to worry about?"

"I have something to worry about." Sam said stubbornly.

"Sam," Dean sighed, "just this once, would you just not argue with me?"

"I can do that." Sam agreed after a moment's thought.

"Thank you." Dean said dramatically, though Sam merely looked slightly guilty instead of amused as had been Dean's intention.

They sat in silence for a while as Dean tried to think of anything but the pain that had started increasing in his body. He hated this feeling of vulnerability and wished that it would just disappear so he could return to how things had been. The last time he had been in the vampire's humble abode he had first been unconscious after being beaten into this state by Angel himself. After that he had at least made some sort of comeback but not at Angel as there had been no real reason to do so. Now, however, he was more vulnerable than before and he hated feeling this weak.

"So, how're you feeling?" Sam asked, bringing Dean out of his thoughts.

"I'm fine, Sammy." Dean lied.

"Yeah, I can see that." Sam answered sarcastically.

"Don't patronize me." Dean joked.

"Seriously, Dean." Sam said, his face matching his words.

"Could've been better, I guess." Dean admitted, though he knew that his words were far from the truth but he was not up to alarming Sam even further.

"Yeah, I can kind of see that too." Sam said slowly.

"Fine, Sam, I feel like a big Unnamed-Goo demon just did a number on me; oh wait, it did." Dean said, trying to bring some humour into his voice.

"That's so not funny." Sam said, though he chuckled slightly.

"Yeah, I can see that." Dean answered, mimicking Sam's words.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Doyle's Irish accent rang through the room.

The two Winchester brothers both turned their gaze in Doyle's direction to see him standing in the doorway to the room looking slightly out of place.

"Hi." Sam said rather awkwardly as it seemed as if he only said it because he didn't know what else to say.

"Hey, good to see you're still breathing." Doyle said giving Dean the thumbs up.

"Yeah, it's going to take more than a bit of demon-goo to finish me off." Dean said, faking a happy tone. "So, what happened to you, anyway? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"That Giles guy; he's just arrived and if you listen carefully I think you can even hear his and angel's shouting from down here, even though Angel actually growls more than he shouts and that Giles guy gives looks more than he shouts." Doyle said in rush as he shifted awkwardly on his feet.

"Oh," Sam sighed and nodded, before getting a confused look on his face, "why are they arguing?"

"Buffy and…stuff." Doyle said, looking more uncomfortable than ever.

"Who's Buffy again?" Dean asked, his interest suddenly peaked.

"Vampire slayer. She and Angel used to be this close." Doyle said with a quick smile as he hooked his two index fingers together. "Long story." He added with the look Dean gave him.

"And what's the 'stuff' they're arguing about?" Sam asked.

"Ah, that was why I took off actually and came down here. Cordelia wanted to stay up there and join in, you know." Doyle said quickly, finally moving into the room. "That…erm…Giles guy he brought someone with him, who does not really have a very good reputation around here."

"By that you mean…?" Dean pressed on.

"The last time he was here – the only other time I've seen him actually – he tried to almost torture Angel to death all for the Ring of Amara."

"Whoa, now just hang on a minute." Dean said, successfully managing to pull himself into a sitting position though panting slightly as a result. "I have no idea what you really just said but I think I got the general gist. You are saying that the guy who did all that to out good vampire friend is here now?"

"Yes." Doyle said nervously. "He's also vampire."

"This just gets better and better." Dean mumbled. "Sam, have I still got my stake?"

"You want a steak, now?" Sam said in disbelief.

"Yeah Sam, I'm really hungry." Dean said sarcastically. "The wooden one, you idiot; the one we use to slay vampires."

"Oh, right." Sam mumbled, blushing slightly in embarrassment as he handed Dean the wooden stake.

"Guys? You aren't just going to start staking and beheading now, are you?" Doyle said with a false laugh.

"Better to be prepared for the worst than not to be prepared at all." Dean said quietly, his head suddenly feeling heavy again. "How did he even get the vampire here and why?"

"I don't know." Doyle answered. "I put my tail between my legs and ran for it as soon as I saw who was with that Giles guy."

"Very heroic." Dean muttered.

"I see the shelves are back up." A voice Dean had not heard before could be heard from the hallway and Dean raised his head slightly, ready to be on his guard.

"No thanks to you, Spike." Angel's voice answered, dripping with venom.

"No hard feelings." The first voice answered, which Dean presumed to belong to Spike the Vampire.

"Spike, may I remind you," a third voice said with an English accent, "that you are only here opposed to Xander's basement, purely because you were convinced that you could be of some assistance. So until you have something to say that is of some assistance it would do you some good to try silence for a while."

"Just wait here a moment." Angel said as the footsteps neared the room which Sam, Dean and Doyle occupied. Angel walked in looking positively fuming and even if Dean had had some quirky remark he would have kept it to himself to be on the safe side. Angel's gaze rested on Dean for a moment, but Dean tried to return it, refusing to back down. "Giles is here and he brought Spike with him."

"Spike the Vampire." Dean said with a nod towards Doyle to indicate how he knew.

Angel nodded before saying, "Just don't behead or stake anyone for the moment. Not that you look entirely up for it…"

"Hey." Dean exclaimed as loudly as he could, which was only nearing normal audio level.

"Sam?" Angel said with a look at the youngest Winchester.

Sam stood up and drew himself to his full height which seemed pretty high from Dean slouching position on the couch. Dean knew that his brother used his height to his own advantage when it came to meeting people he was unsure about and in this was such a situation.

"I'll be good." Sam promised though Dean saw his hand close around the stake which was tucked into his trousers.

Angel nodded before walking out of the room again only to re-enter moments later followed by a middle-aged Englishman, dressed in a suit and glasses resting comfortably on his nose, and a shorter man with bleach-blonde hair wearing a long, black leather jacket, a smug expression on his face. Dean had already guessed which one was Spike the Vampire and which was Giles the Guy With The English Accent.

"Sam, Dean this is Giles and Spike," Angel said dully gesturing first to the man dressed in the suit and then to the one in the leather jacket as Dean had suspected, "Giles, Spike; Sam and Dean Winchester."

"He looks about to drop." Spike said with a laugh as he looked at Dean.

Dean pushed himself to his feet with some difficulty though refusing to let it show. He measured the vampire with a look, pleased to find he was taller than the bleach-blonde.

"Spike, what did I just say?" Giles said as he took of his glasses and cleaned them slowly.

"No, that's okay." Dean said, happy to hear that he sounded stronger than he felt. "If you've got something to say, vampire, spit it out."

"I'm good." Spike sighed, though he looked as if he was awfully tempted to retaliate.

"You were a little more talkative the last time I saw you." Doyle piped up from behind Sam and Dean.

"Well, I didn't have chip in my head back then." Spike answered looking very annoyed.

"What?" Angel said questionably, looking at Spike with newfound interest.

"That's right, Caveman, Spike is now a good little dog who keeps his teeth to himself." Spike said as he put his hands behind his head and leaned slightly back against the pressure.

"Vampire with a soul;" Dean said pointing and Angel, "vampire with chip in his head so he no longer bites." Dean continued, now pointing at Spike. "What's next? You are both secretly circus dancers?"

"I actually ate one of those once…" Spike said, a pondering expression on his face.

* * *

Please take just a few minutes out of your time to drop in a review.

Just one word...

Please...

sniff


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I hang my head in shame. I am so sorry for the long update. My exams were suddenly upon me and I had no time to write. Exams are now a thing of the past and I finally got down to posting something. So, a big thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. I hope some of you are still willing to read the story.

I will go and hide in a closet now...

...after the disclaimer: I-don't-own.

There you go...

* * *

The silence was stifling. Angel had just about managed to get all of them seated and Dean was not all too surprised to see the smug, comfortable expression on Spike's face. To him, it seemed that everything was a big joke, something Dean would not agree with. Doyle was stood in a corner of the room, trying to look calm, collected and casual as he leant against the wall. Giles was still standing, cleaning his glasses carefully. As Dean had managed to stay seated on the couch, Sam had sat down next to him, though Dean did not miss the worried glances his brother shot at him every now and then.

"Where's Cordelia?" Doyle asked, breaking the awkward silence.

"I asked her to get the…er…goo we saved." Angel said, looking slightly out of place as he used the name Sam had given the demon-poison.

"You saved some of that?" Dean questioned, raising his eyebrows slightly at Angel.

"I thought it could come in handy." Angel explained coolly.

"You are probably right." Giles said as he placed his glasses back on his nose. "It will make it easier to identify the demon."

"I've never seen something like that before." Dean muttered.

"Well, _I'm_ not surprised," Spike said suddenly, turning his full attention on Dean, "how much do you even know about demons?"

"I wouldn't question them on that, Spike." Angel growled.

"Bloody hell; what is it with you people?" Spike sighed as he leant back in the chair, clearly ready to get comfortable. "No chance of any fun in this place."

"Well, Spike, you were the one who wanted to come. I did not exactly bring you for my own pleasure." Giles contemplated before turning his attention to Dean who was chuckling lightly from the bantering between Giles and the vampire. "Would you mind telling me what happened?"

Dean glared at him for a moment before looking across at Sam who started talking, because, to be honest, Dean could not remember a lot of what had actually happened; only that it had hurt like hell.

"Dean and I were in a motel room –"

"Sounds cosy."

"Spike." Angel warned.

Sam cleared his throat and glared at Spike before continuing.

"Anyway, we were in this motel room when this demon came in through the window. When it ran out again we took after it. It found us before we found it."

"It caught me off guard." Dean said, hoping to save himself at least a bit of dignity.

"This demon it has three fingers which are clawed, right?" Sam said with a glance at Angel who nodded. "I think its way of attack is by digging the claws on each hand into its victim's shoulders. It looks like the poison comes from the claws."

"Sounds like a Katlan demon." Spike said as he sucked slightly on the inside of his cheeks.

"A what?" Sam and Dean asked in unison.

"A Katlan demon." Spike repeated, looking overly pleased with himself. "Big scaly fella."

"Good lord." Giles murmured rather vacantly.

"Anyone order demon goo?" Cordelia asked as she appeared in the doorway, holding a small vial with the contents of the black goo between two fingers as if the vial could explode any minute.

"Thanks, Cordy." Angel said quietly as he took the vial from her.

Giles had grabbed some books out of the shoulder bag he was carrying and, almost instantly, Sam was at his side peering at the books.

"So, how did you get into all of this anyway?" Sam asked as Giles started flicking through one of the books.

"I used to be part of the Watcher's Council." Giles answered as he stopped turning the pages. "I was Buffy's Watcher. I assume you know who Buffy is?"

Sam and Dean nodded, though Dean quickly stopped as the motion brought back the throbbing in his head. He glanced at Angel and was slightly surprised to see the almost hurt look in his eyes as the vampire's eyes briefly met his own.

"Was this it?" Giles asked as he pointed to the pages.

Dean groaned inwardly as he pushed himself up from the couch with some difficulty and dragged himself across the floor to join the others who had crowded around Giles and Sam.

"Looks about right." Dean said as he stared at the pencil drawing in front of him. "Ugly son of a bitch."

"You were right, Spike," Giles said and Dean almost laughed at the reluctant tone in his voice, "it is a Katlan demon."

"There you go; I told you I could be of service." Spike answered, the smug expression returning to his face.

"That is just so disgusting." Cordelia said as she leant closer to the drawing.

"Hey, but now that we know what it is we can do something, right?" Doyle asked hopefully.

"I thought that the Katlan demons were extinct." Angel said.

"So did I." Giles answered.

"Well this one certainly isn't." Dean mumbled as he shakily made his way back to the couch as he started to feel his legs could no longer support his weight.

"Dean, are you okay?" Sam asked, concern seeping through his voice.

"I'm fine, Sam." Dean snapped a little harder than first intended. To tell the truth he felt horrible and he was scared and he hated both feelings.

"Maybe we should check how far that poison has reached?" Giles suggested before turning his gaze momentarily to the blonde vampire, "Spike, why don't you make yourself useful and tell us what you know about the Katlan demon."

For some reason Dean was very reluctant to take his shirt off but he also knew that it would be pure stupidity not to check how close to almost certain death he was.

"I fought one some hundred years back." Spike said, looking a little annoyed at being told what to do. "Mean little bugger."

"Did you kill it?" Dean asked as he slowly started to unbutton his shirt.

"No." Spike answered rather reluctantly.

"Oh really," Giles said, though he did not sound too surprised, "and why was that then?"

"Well, we fought for hours; days almost –"

"Spike…"

"It caught me off guard." Spike mumbled quickly, his eyes finding the floor for a moment.

"Happens to the best of us." Sam offered though he looked rather uncertain whether or not he should be comforting a vampire and Dean guessed that Angel's slight smirk at Spike's comment was not helping matters.

Dean watched the interaction in silence. He did want to admit it but he was starting to feel drowsy and the pain in his chest was slowly increasing, making every breath a painful process. He looked down himself as he unbuttoned the last part of his shirt, but shut out all of the conversation.

"Shit." Dean mumbled and the buzzing of voices around him stopped immediately. Dean continued to stare at the thick black threads that were now mere inches from his heart. "I…er…I think the goo is nearing its target."

"Dean?" Sam's voice came through his clouded mind and he raised his gaze to look into his brother's eyes.

"I'm screwed, Sammy." Dean said with a fake chuckle. _Keep the game face on_.

"Nah, you're okay we're going to get that out and –" Sam ranted but was cut off by Spike.

"Yeah, because I can't even eat you when you're dead with all the Katlan demon…stuff."

"Spike." Angel warned and Dean wondered if he had ever seen the vampire look so angry.

"So, what's the plan?" Cordelia asked, looking slightly worried though she tried to disguise it by flicking her hair back behind her shoulders, drawing a glance from Doyle who had become eerily quiet.

"I know of something that might be able to help." Giles offered as he pushed his glasses a little further up his nose.

"If it involves cutting my chest open, stop right there." Dean warned holding up a hand to signify his point, before buttoning up his shirt again and pulling on his jacket; why was he so cold?

"It does not but it may be more unpleasant." Giles said in a matter-of-fact tone that made it seem as though he could just as well have talked about overcooked potatoes.

"What is it?" Angel asked after having taken a position by his weapon cabinet and leaning casually against its door.

"I think the question is: will I die anyway?" Dean knew that Sam hated it when he spoke like that but he needed to know. He did not want to go through something worse than having your neck cut open if he was going to die anyway.

"It's complicated," Giles sighed, "but no, the idea is that the poison should be drawn out."

"Well that's good news." Doyle's Irish accent rang through the room joyously. Dean thought he sounded a little too enthusiastic but he found that the half-demon often reacted in this way when there was something worrying him.

"There's something here that does not make sense, though." Giles said as he buried himself in the book before him again.

"What's that then?" Spike asked, though his interest seemed elsewhere.

"The text talk of something to do with magic, but that has nothing to do with the possible cure. It says that…that…good lord." Giles finished, taking off his glasses and seemingly staring into space.

Spike looked across at him with raised eyebrows, for once a silent question. Angel had pushed himself away from the cabinet door and was making his way across the floor towards Giles. If it had been in any other situation Dean was quite sure he would have made some kind of smug comment but that seemed highly inappropriate.

"Giles?" Cordelia prompted.

"Yes…yes, I'm sorry." Giles rambled as he quickly put his glasses back on and looked down at the text. "It says that we need –"

"If you say that I have to eat or drink anything of that of that demon, I'm seriously going to kick your ass." Dean warned but felt that it fell on deaf ears when Giles merely glared once at him before continuing.

"The poison floes inside the Katlan's own veins, but to prevent it from being infected itself it has a pair of glands which releases the antioxidant."

"You've got to be kidding me." Dean sighed, letting his back fall back against the support from the couch.

"Dean, shut up." Sam said quickly.

"Stop for a minute." Spike said suddenly.

"What?" The rest of the occupants in the room returned in unison and looked at him.

"Before we go any further, can we just set one thing straight?" Spike replied looking very serious. "You two are bickering like a bloody married couple, so are you…?"

"We're brothers." Sam and Dean retorted in unison.

"Just checking." Spike said quietly with a slight smirk playing in his lips.

As annoyed as Dean was he could not help but almost laugh at the look on the bleach-blonde vampire's face. The more wound up everybody else became, the more he seemed to enjoy himself.

"So, more demon goo coming my way?" Dean asked, closing his eyes for a moment to concentrate on drawing in some much needed air.

"We have to find the Katlan demon first, but hopefully that shouldn't be too hard." Giles said with a sigh as he poured over his books again.

"Can I…can I see that for a moment?" Sam asked, a frown appearing on his forehead as he looked at the book lying before Giles.

"Of course." Giles answered and quickly handed the book to Sam who offered him a hurried thanks before looking down at the book's pages.

"Sam? Hey Sam? Earth to Sam?" Dean attempted when Sam had been quiet for a few moments.

"The bullet hardly hurt it." Sam said, his eyes still locked on the pages. "What if the only way to kill it is by removing the glands?"

"Killing it by its own poison." Dean added.

"Exactly." Sam said as he finally looked up from the book.

"Good thinking there, Sammy." Dean said, but when Sam glared at him he quickly added, "Sam."

"I'll go and see if I can find this thing." Angel said as he opened the weapon cabinet and started picking out a few pieces.

"Need any help?" Doyle asked.

"I've got it." Angel said. Dean had slowly come to realise the stiffness of which Angel moved after Giles and Spike had arrived; the vampire seemed to be trying his best to stay calm, but Dean could not help but wonder how much it had actually taken him to call Giles.

"I'll go with you." Sam said as he quickly got to his feet and walked over to the vampire.

"Sam, have you got my keys?" Dean asked as he felt around in his pockets for the keys to the Impala.

"Yeah." Sam answered as though this was self-explanatory.

"You took my keys?" Dean questioned as he looked at his brother with a rather pointed look.

"Dean what was I supposed to do?" Sam hissed, clearly not finding this topic appropriable for the current situation.

"If I find one scratch – just one – I'll…I'll be very angry." Dean said after a moment's thought of what his threat should be, a bit disappointed with his choice as he said it.

Sam merely glared at him, making Dean feel a little better.

"Just behave yourself, okay?" Sam said sincerely.

"As ever." Dean promised, but Sam did not look convinced.

"Same goes for you." Angel said with a pointed look at Spike who glared at him once before returning his attention to the various things in the room. Angel looked at Cordelia, Doyle and finished with Dean before adding, "If he gets too annoying just play him some classical music."

This time Spike glared at him a bit longer until Angel turned his back and he and Sam made their way towards the elevator.

"So, is there anywhere to get a beer around here?" Spike asked as they heard Sam and Angel's footsteps above them.

"I second that." Dean answered and looked over at Doyle.

"Oh, so now I'm the coffee guy; the one who bring everyone drinks?" Doyle questioned with a look at Dean.

"Yeah." Dean answered.

"There should be some in the fridge in the kitchen. Doyle said with a nod of the head towards the hallway.

"Uh, wait a minute." Cordelia said as she felt around in her pockets. She pulled out her phone and looked at the screen for a moment before quickly stuffing it back down her trouser pockets. "I got to go; normal stuff awaits me. I will be back later to see how the de-gooing is going."

With that she flashed a smile and quickly left the room.

"It is a wonder to me that you are all still alive." Giles sighed as he looked over at Doyle who squirmed slightly under his gaze.

"We're not half-bad, you know." Doyle defended them. "We've helped a lot of people."

"That is true." Dean felt the need to support Doyle for a moment as he truly looked uncomfortable.

Spike pushed himself up from the chair and walked towards the kitchen, deciding to take matters into his own hands. Dean leant back against the support again and closed his eyes for a moment, hoping it would dull the thudding in his head, though he had no such luck.

"So," Giles voice broke through into his mind and he quickly opened his eyes, "how did you and your brother become involved with all of this?"

"You mean the world of what goes bumping in the night or the world of Angel Investigations?" Dean asked.

"I believe both." Giles said with a quick smile.

"You could say it's the family business," Dean answered simply as he did not feel up to telling him the entire history of their knowledge of the supernatural, "and we met these guys when we were hunting vampires in the neighbourhood."

Spike came strolling back into the room clasping three beer bottles. He handed one to Doyle and one to Dean before settling back down in his chair.

"There wasn't any tea." Spike said with a smug expression on his face as he looked over at Giles.

"That's quite alright." Giles responded shortly. The man looked extremely annoyed about something, but Dean thought that it easily could have something to do with the blonde vampire who was now trying to open the beer bottle with his teeth.

Doyle looked over at Dean, his eyes reflecting the concern his face did not show. Dean tried to ignore it along with the pain he was feeling, but it was getting harder to push it away. He pulled out a small knife that was still tucked safely inside his jacket and misused the item by opening the beer bottle with it. He took a long draught on the beer, satisfied to feel it cooled his throat slightly.

"Have I by any chance met you before?" Giles asked Dean after a few moments of silence where Giles had been shifting through his books.

"I don't think so." Dean answered honestly as he did not believe he had ever seen this man before, though in his condition his words could hardly be described as credible.

"I was sure I had." Giles said slowly as though he tried to remember where or when it was he thought he had seen Dean.

"I…er…I think I might know, actually." Dean realised slowly where it was Giles could have seen him. "Do you own a T.V.?"

"Yes, I do." Giles sighed.

"You do?" Spike suddenly questioned and Dean wondered if he had only spoken because he was no longer preoccupied with his beer. Giles ignored Spike's comment, clearly with some difficulty which caused another smirk to creep unto the vampire's face.

"I am probably on the FBI's most wanted list." Dean admitted rather quietly.

"Really?" Giles mumbled. "Dare I ask what landed you in such a position?"

"A shapeshifter that looked like me killed a few people in St Louis. Along with a few other things." Dean said before taking another swig from the beer.

"I didn't know that." Doyle said as he walked away from the wall and sat down on the other side of the couch.

"No, it didn't seem so important the last time we were here." Dean answered him. "Dude, what's happening with you and Cordelia?"

"Well, you know, I'm waiting for the right moment. I don't want to just –"

"Man, that was what you said last time." Dean interrupted Doyle.

"Really?" Doyle said though he seemed rather anxious.

"Wait," Spike said slowly, "you and Cordelia…?"

"It might happen." Doyle exclaimed rather nervously, blushing slightly.

"Yeah sure." Spike chuckled sarcastically.

Doyle's face fell slightly and Dean actually felt sorry for him.

"Just go and get her." Dean said encouragingly, but Doyle merely turned his head and looked at him.

"I'm half demon, man."

"So?" Dean questioned.

"Do you really think that someone like Cordelia would…with someone like me?" Doyle questioned as he fiddled with his beer bottle which Dean noticed was still unopened.

"She went out with Xander so I can't see she can go much lower." Spike reasoned, or rather, Dean figured that to Spike this was perfect logic.

"Let's not start insulting the one who has you living in his basement, Spike." Giles joined into the conversation.

"Because he shows me oh so much hospitality." Spike said in a mocking and sarcastic tone.

"All things considered." Giles said as he tilted his head slightly.

"Are you even going to drink that?" Spike asked, eyeing the beer bottle in Doyle's fidgeting hands.

Doyle seemed to contemplate the thought for a while before throwing the bottle in Spike's general direction who easily caught it. The vampire slipped into his game face as he pried open the bottle and kept it on for the first couple of sips.

Dean eyed the vampire for a few seconds amazed that he had met yet another vampire who was not trying to kill him. It was beginning to become more of a habit, though he thought that, given the chance, it was possible that Spike would rather be sinking his teeth into his neck than drinking beer. That thought alone made Dean rather uncomfortable. As he took another swig from the bottle he felt a stab of pain shoot through his chest and only just managed to hold back the groan of pain that was threatening to escape his lips.

To Dean, it was starting to become painstakingly obvious that if Angel and Sam had no luck in finding the Katlan demon then he would be dead meat no matter what.

* * *

Just came out of the closet to say: please review. I am awfully demanding these days...

Sam and Angel action next chapter (NO not _that_ kind of action ;-) )

I will now return to the closet...


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Yes, believe it or not I am back with an update. Sorry it's taken so long...again. Summer has been awefully hectic along with this chapter being deleted off the computer so I had to write it in again (thank god I had it written in hand).

Thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed! Your words really mean a lot! They also make me feel very guilty for the slow updates.

Disclaimer: Don't own. Though it would be nice, wouldn't it?

* * *

When Sam and Angel first set out, Angel had looked as if he was heading for the sewers, but he was quickly persuaded by Sam to get in the car. Angel mused that it was probably the last time he would not have to ride in the backseat of the Impala if they saved Dean. If; it was that one horrible word that tilted everything. The vampire knew Sam was thinking the same thing and he could smell the fear and anxiety coming from the young man. He had to admit though that Sam was very good at not showing it.

Sam kept quiet as they drove, but then again, Angel had never been one to initiate conversation, so silence was bound to overtake them. Somehow Angel had the vague idea that, had it been Dean here instead of Sam, music would be blaring from the stereo and he would be breaking every speed limit. But this was Sam. Sam who tried to keep calm and collected and only broke the speeding limit slightly.

They had decided to go to the place where the demon had attacked Angel and see if they could pick up its trace from there. Angel would rather have had Sam stay with his brother but he did not want to get into an argument about it so he had let him come; or rather, he had not said anything. Doyle's vision from those months before when he had first met the Winchesters was still clear in his mind. Doyle had seen them kill him, and that was proof enough for Angel that they were capable of doing just that.

"What are we going to do when we find it?" Sam asked suddenly, making Angel jump slightly.

"Kill it." Angel suggested, though he knew it came out more as a statement. The truth was he was not quite sure what to do with it if…when they found it.

"You don't think that would destroy the effects of the antidotes in the glands?" Sam questioned.

"Maybe." Angel answered. He was not quite sure how to respond to that. He was not exactly a Katlan demon expert. _Maybe we should have brought Spike._ Did he really just think that? He had to be loosing his mind.

"How're your shoulders?" Sam asked with a quick glance in Angel's direction.

How were his shoulders? They hurt…a lot, but he supposed that with not heartbeat the poison was not being pumped around his body, which meant that it wouldn't kill him…well, re-kill, right?

"Fine." He answered curtly. No was he was going to tell Sam how he was really feeling. He was a vampire and he could take care of himself.

"Good." Sam said in a tone not unlike the tone Angel had just used.

Angel looked back out of the window at the early nightlife of Los Angeles. The lights were flashing past too quickly to from any words resulting in them only making him feel slightly dizzy. Wait a minute; since when did he get dizzy?

"Do you…er…do you think he'll be okay?" Sam's voice snapped Angel out of his thoughts and he turned to look at the young man in the seat next to him. He noticed Sam's hands were clutching the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. He was staring straight ahead but his jaw was slowly clenching and unclenching making Angel aware of how worried Sam really was, and he decided he did not want to lie.

"I don't know."

Sam nodded and quickly blinked away the tears which were threatening to fall. He didn't say anything and Angel started to have the uncomfortable feeling that maybe he should have lied. He never was very tactful.

"I'm sure he will be though." Angel said as he tried to make up for his previous words.

"I hope so." Sam said rather quickly as he slowed the Impala down and parked it on the sidewalk, near the alley Angel had had the encounter earlier.

This part of the city was a lot quieter, Angel noticed as he stepped out of the black Chevy. He made sure he was loaded with the stakes, the gun and the couple of knives which he had brought from his personal stock.

"Have you got any weapons?" He asked as he looked over at Sam who was busy unlocking the trunk of the car.

"Just a few." Sam replied as he dug out a few weapons, including a sleek looking gun with a few engravings. Sam looked up to see Angel eyeing the gun. "Samuel Colt made this gun. It's supposed to be able to kill anything."

"Don't go trigger happy on me." Angel warned as he turned around and headed towards the alleyway.

"You didn't want me to come, did you?" Sam's voice carried from behind him just as he heard the trunk being closed.

"No, I didn't." Angel answered truthfully as he continued to walk. He could hear Sam coming up behind with long strides, quickly catching him up.

"Why not?" Sam questioned.

"Is this really of great importance right now?" Angel questioned as he stopped to look up at Sam. Yes, he had to look slightly _up_ at Sam which annoyed him to no end.

"Yes." Sam replied simply. "You think I'm a liability, don't you?" Sam accused, his tone slightly agitated.

"No." Angel growled. He knew Sam was upset which was probably partly why he had brought this up, but Angel did not think that this was the time to discuss any of this. "And this is doing nothing to help your brother."

"Don't drag Dean into this." Sam threatened. "You didn't want me to come with you to find the demon that's killing my brother and I want to know why."

"Why?" Angel demanded as he turned and started walking again. He heard Sam hesitate for a moment before following.

"When there are two of us I need to know if you are there to watch –" Sam began, but Angel cut him off with a hard shove into the wall by the sidewalk, pinning the young hunter to it.

"This has nothing to do with that." Angel stated with a low growl. "Your brother is dying and you want to know why I didn't want you to come? Fine, I'll tell you why." Angel realised his voice was getting dangerously low and was vaguely aware of Sam trying to push him off but he kept going. "I have no idea if we can even save Dean. If we can't he has not got long left." Angel hesitated as he noticed that Sam had stilled. He couldn't say that he had wanted Sam to have a last few moments with his brother; not when he saw the tears glistening in Sam's eyes. Sam knew this, of course he did. He had only tried to deny it.

Angel let go of him and took a step back. He did not say anything as he continued walking towards the alley. At first he could not hear Sam following but after a little while he heard the youngest Winchester follow not far behind him.

The alley was darker than the street they had just come from, and the smell of death still lingered in the air. He walked as quietly as he could, his vampire senses on full alert. He heard a bin falling over towards the end of the alley and he immediately held out to Sam behind him to tell him to slow down. He did not want two sick Winchester brothers on his hands; one was plenty.

He moved slowly towards the source of the noise keeping a lookout for any sign of movement. He paused for a moment as he saw the overturned bin, its contents littered across the width of the alley. He could hear something rummaging through the heaps of rubbish, but he could see nothing. He took a few cautious steps forwards and kicked a bit of rubbish aside causing loud squeaking noises to erupt from the rubbish.

"Rats." Sam was right next to him without him even realising. What was wrong with him? Usually he would have sensed Sam coming up from behind him. "They couldn't have turned the bin over though."

Angel nodded once before walking over to the bin to look at it a bit closer.

"You're right." Angel informed Sam who had followed him over to the bin. "I think it's playing with us."

"Great." Sam huffed as he immediately scanned the darkness for any movement.

Angel moved slowly passed the bin, taking care to make as little noise as possible. He was quite determined to find the demon quickly so all of this could be over and done with. He knew that his meeting with Buffy had affected more than he let on, but he tried to deny the small voice in the back of his head that was whispering him to him that he was going to fail. They had a hunch on what could save Dean but nothing more than that.

He swayed slightly on his feet but held a hand out to the wall to steady him. This feeling was scaring him slightly. He had not thought that the Katlan's poison would have any effect on him since he was technically already dead.

"Hey dude, are you alright?" Sam asked and Angel quickly blinked away the blurriness that had threatened to form in front of his eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Angel replied as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Whatever…" Sam said, his voice trailing slightly.

"What?" Angel questioned with a quick look at the young man.

"You're almost as bad as Dean." Sam exclaimed, though he kept his voice level. "I mean, since when can't a vampire stay on his own two feet?"

"It's not _that_ bad." Angel defended himself weakly.

"So you are determined to insist that the demon's poison has absolutely no effect on you?" Sam retaliated with a pointed look at Angel who was starting to feel rather uncomfortable.

"Demon to catch, people to save, gotta go." Angel said quickly before pushing himself off the wall and continuing to inspect the area.

"Smell anything?" Sam asked as he crouched down and looked closer at the tarmac.

"Yes." Angel said as this was perfectly true. He could smell the Katlan alright, but that did not mean he could locate it. "I think we're going this way." He nodded further down into the darkness of the alley as his vampire-sensitive vision tried to inform him of any possible movement.

Sam got up and quickly, though quietly, followed Angel. The vampire could practically feel the anxiety dripping off the young Winchester but he tried to ignore it as he could also see Sam was trying hard to conceal it.

They both came to an abrupt stop when a shape moved in the shadows. It was clear to anyone that this was something far bigger than a rat and possibly far more deadly.

"It knew we were to come back, didn't it?" Sam whispered as the shape of the Katlan became clear to them.

Angel did not answer but had the uncomfortable feeling that Sam very well be right because he highly doubted that the demon had taken a liking to the alley and decided to make it its living place.

The Katlan looked up at them as it hobbled towards them on all fours, its eyes reflecting the dull moonlight.

"Did you bring a tranquilizer gun?" Angel asked, keeping his voice low as the Katlan held his gaze.

"No, did you?" Sam replied quietly.

"No." Angel said. "Do you have one in the car?"

"Might do." Sam answered.

"Could you be a bit more specific?" Angel hissed as he noticed the demon before him crouching down slightly as though preparing to jump.

"What do you want me to say?" Sam hissed back. "We may have one in the trunk of the car."

"You don't know?" Angel growled.

"Fine, then, yes I am absolutely certain we have a tranquilizer in the trunk of the car." Sam whispered back hectically.

"So, now you are absolutely certain you have a tranquilizer in the trunk of your car?" Angel questioned.

"Would you just shut up?" Sam hissed again and Angel had the impression that the young man was starting to get rather irritated, which was something that never worked well with anxiety.

"Okay, fine. When I say run, we run back to the car as fast as we can, grab the tranquilizer out of the trunk and shoot it." Angel explained quickly.

"We shoot the trunk?"

"No, we don't shoot the trunk. The demon; we shoot the demon."

"What makes you so sure it will follow?" Sam asked.

"Look at it." Angel said simply as he saw the Katlan's hind end crouch down a fraction lower. "Run!"

At Angel's yell both he and Sam spun on their heel and took off at a run back down the alley the sound of the Katlan in hot pursuit only urging them on. As they rounded the corner out of the alley Angel stumbled when a heavy weight landed on his back, but he quickly and effectively rolled over while grabbing on of his knives and stuck the knife where he could: in the arm of the demon. The demon hissed in rage and jumped to the side giving Angel a chance to jump up off the ground and run towards the car where Sam was already fighting with the trunk.

"Would you just open the damn thing?" Angel yelled as the demon pounced on him again sending him crashing into the wall.

"Trying here." Sam shouted back and Angel just saw him get the trunk open out of the corner of his eye before he was forcefully distracted by the Katlan.

He screamed out in pain as the demon scratched its claws across his chest, biting his neck only a second later giving him no room act. He growled loudly, his game face slipping on, and gave the demon a hard shove sending it rolling across the sidewalk. Angel reached for his gun and fired a round at the creature but the bullets didn't seem to do more than annoy the creature. He instead pulled out a knife and stake having one in each hand, readying himself for the creature's next attack.

He did not have to wait long before the Katlan snarled at him and jumped towards him giving Angel a chance to run the blade of the knife across the neck of the demon clearly angering it further.

"I could use a little help over here." Angel informed Sam as the Katlan once again attempted to push up against the wall, this time digging its claws back into the already present wounds in his shoulders.

"Got it!" Sam exclaimed and it wasn't more than mere seconds before Angel felt the Katlan grow limb making it possible for him to push it off.

He slid down the wall ending up in a sprawled sitting position, changing back into his human face. If he thought he felt bad before, he needed to seriously reconsider, because if it was bad before then the pain he felt now was close to unbearable.

"Angel? Angel, can you hear me?" Sam's frantic voice called from somewhere to his right.

"What took you so long?" Angel asked as he looked over at Sam who was crouched on the ground next to him.

"Dean and I have a very bad habit of throwing stuff into the trunk making it rather hard to find anything in a hurry." Sam explained sounding rather embarrassed.

"It's okay, I'm fine." Angel assured him as he used the wall for support to push himself off the ground. He looked at the demon sprawled on the pavement before them. "Let's get that in the car and get back to the others."

"Dean is so going to kill me." Sam muttered as he and Angel got the Katlan thrown into the backseat.

"You're sure it won't wake up any time soon, right?" Angel questioned a he seriously did not feel up to another round with the demon.

"Yeah, I'm sure." Sam answered.

"Good." Angel mumbled as he limped slightly over to the passenger side and lowered himself gratefully into the seat. Now he was glad they had taken the car.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Sam asked as he took his seat behind the wheel.

"I'll be alright."

* * *

And there you have it. That was actually my favourite chapter so far in this fic. Angel and Sam interaction is so fun to write - they just won't shut up...neither of them once they get going.


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